Chargers punt team slipping during this slide

The Chargers punt coverage team ranks among the NFL's best. The unit supports Mike Scifres well in the battle for field position, a thankless job that often goes unnoticed.

Except when disaster strikes.

Then, all eyes focus on what went terribly wrong. It normally ends with Scifres on his back, wincing in pain. It starts with a blocking error up front, an NFL rarity that can change a game.

The past two weeks, it has.

The Chargers had a punt blocked and returned for a touchdown against Tampa Bay, a moment that lost a lead the Chargers never regained.

It was characterized as an aberration, until it happened again.

Denver blocked a punt the following week, and scored a touchdown on the next play of a game the Chargers had to win and lost.

“Those blocks don't define us as a group, but there's no denying that we failed in those situations,” special teams captain Darrell Stuckey said. “On special teams, you're remembered for the bad you do and ignored when you get it right. Good becomes normal. Bad becomes a focal point.

“The expectation is for us to be perfect. When something like that happens, it's a dramatic event.”

Special teams play the past two weeks is a microcosm of the entire Chargers season. The Chargers look great one moment, terrible the next. Inconsistency has been this team's downfall, and is chiefly responsible for four losses in five games.

The Chargers say they still haven't played a complete game. At some point, something goes wrong and affects the outcome. On Sunday against the 8-2 Baltimore Ravens, the Chargers can't afford to make major mistakes.

The special teams unit believes it won't make another one. Can't afford it either way.

Tides turn on blunders like blocked punts. It certainly has these past two weeks. It certainly did in 2010, when the team had four punts blocked and another deflected. The Chargers missed the playoffs due in large part to special teams foibles.

It hasn't helped this season's cause either.

“Anytime you have a problem in the kicking game, it's big,” Chargers special teams coach Rich Bisaccia said. “It's magnified because you only get the one play to get it right. Anytime something negative happens, you get dulled on the sideline. You feel like you lose momentum and a bit of energy. That's a natural human reaction to such things.

“When you give up a big play in the kicking game, a team can get down. It's our job to make sure it doesn't happen again.”

While the punts were blocked for different reasons, miscommunication is a common thread between the two.

“We know what the system is and our roles within it,” special teammer Andrew Gachkar said. “If we don't follow it to the letter, bad things can happen. Everyone has to stay on the same page. We have to keep grinding, and stay sharp on game day.”

Stuckey and Gachkar want special teams to be a point of stability when all else fails.

The offense has struggled with scoring. Retaining possession has proven difficult as well. The defense hasn't generated a consistent pass rush and has given up too many big plays. Special teams was near perfect before the Tampa Bay block, a disappointment of the highest order for those in the kicking game.

They want to find solutions, not be part of the problem. Generally speaking, that's true. The Chargers have forced two turnovers in the kicking game. They've recovered an onside kick. They've missed one field goal all season.

The same can be said for other phases. There are several bright spots, but a few negative plays have wasted those efforts and keep the Chargers down.

“We have faith in each other and we believe we'll play well,” Stuckey said. “None of us are perfect people, but we can work together to put on a complete performance. On Sunday, we have another chance to do that.”